Strategy
Chuo Mitsui Looks Beyond Japan Through Partnership With UK Firm

Japan's
Chuo Mitsui Asset Trust and Banking has partnered with the
UK's
Standard Life Investments to cross manage about $2.2 billion
worth of funds.
Under the deal, Chuo Mitsui will be advising on and managing
SLI's $1 billion equity strategy in Japan, while SLI will be
subadvising Chuo Mitsui's $1.2 billion global equity fund. The
agreement is meant to help each other expand into the other's
market, which will be done through their respective distribution
networks. Clients will then have the benefit of accessing both
funds.
"With trends working against us demographically and the
consolidation of the asset management industry, we decided it was
time to expand (outside of Japan)," said
Christopher Renwick, the London head of sales and marketing
for Chuo Mitsui.
Japanese firms, which carry a reputation for favouring
conservative investments, stand to gain from this type of
agreement given the growing attention Asia is getting from other
countries. Beyond institutional money, the Japanese hold about
$15 trillion in personal assets, most of which are spent in
low-yielding accounts.